How we cite our quotes: (Part.Poem.Stanza)
Quote #4
He hated the afternoon sun
the color of brown,
and cold rice. (1.12.3)
Food is such an important part of everyone's lives that Hà uses it to describe the sky view.
Quote #5
… each family gets
five kilos of sugar,
ten kilos of rice,
and a small jug of
vegetable oil. (1.16.2)
These are the simple, cheap staples that the Vietnamese have grown to depend on during wartime. It's not much, but Hà and her family are about to find themselves making do with much less once they're on the ship.
Quote #6
Yam and manioc
taste lovely
blended with rice, she says, and smiles,
as if I don't know
how the poor
fill their children's bellies. (1.17.3)
Sometimes, food is the center of the universe. In this case, we're not talking about it in a foodie way—we're talking about the fact that Hà's family is poor, and sometimes stretching the food they have poses a real challenge.